Maryland 4-H Dairy Judging Wrap-up

Maryland 4-H Dairy Judging Wrap-up

Maryland 4-H Dairy Judging has a successful season!

The Maryland State Fair presented the department with the opportunity to work with the CMREC Dairy Herd, the State Fair Birthing Center and countless 4-H Contests over the “11 Best Days of Summer.” Our students gained experience in educating the general public about the practices and benefits of production agriculture while our staff and faculty worked to create educational experiences for students, 4-H members and the public. One such event was the 4-H and FFA State Dairy Judging Contest. The eighty five youth contestants evaluated ten classes of cattle and ranked them on their confirmation to breed standards. The quality of the dairy cattle in Maryland is known nation-wide and this year 175 people from collegiate, junior college and 4-H teams from around the country traveled to participate in the contest.

Dairy judging provides youth an opportunity to learn public speaking, leadership, analytical skills and most of all how to work together as a team. These skills serve the 4-H members well after their career in 4-H has come to an end. By all accounts, the 2012 Maryland State Fair was a great success! Two outstanding teams of 4-Hers were selected to represent Maryland at National Contests.

At the Invitational Youth Dairy Judging Contest at the All-American Dairy Show in Harrisburg PA on Sept 17th, team members Scott DeBaugh, Carol DeBaugh, Tessa Wiles, and Derrick Zimmerman finished 5th Overall. They were the high team in the Holstein and Jersey breeds, with Carol DeBaugh finishing as the top individual in Jerseys. Their success as a team, coached by Jessica Fritz Little of New Windsor, MD and Kiera Finucane of the University of Maryland, continued at the National 4-H Dairy Judging Contest held at the World Dairy Expo in Madison, WI on October 1st. The team finished 9th Overall with an impressive 3rd place finish in the Brown Swiss breed and 6th place in Oral Reasons. Scott DeBaugh earned All-American status for his 18th place finish in the contest. Congratulations Scott!

At the North American International Livestock Expo in Louisville, KY on November 4, 2012, Brent Zimmerman, Katelyn Allen, Julia Doody, Ian Doody and coach Amanda Dennis of Thurmont and Kiera Finucane of the University of Maryland, the team finished 6th Overall. The contest included 22 4-H and FFA teams. All team members finished in the top 30 in the contest for Oral Reasons and they were the high team in the Jersey breed and second place team in Guernseys. Katelyn Allen was the fourth high individual in the contest and Julia Doody was the high individual in Jersey and 4th high individual in Oral Reasons.

We are proud to have had the opportunity to travel with and showcase the efforts of the Maryland 4-Hers this fall and thank you for your continued support of the program. To view the full contest results, please visit our website at http://dairy.umd.edu / or call Kiera Finucane at (301)-405-1392.